The Brays

by L. J. Fox

  Suddenly, she stopped dead in her tracks.

  She could smell Polo Blue.

  Chapter 49

  Layne assessed the situation in a split second. She identified the smells of the person who had attacked the three girls. He was directly behind her and to the left near a bush. It was dark and he would not realise that she knew he was there. She had actually walked past his hiding spot. She felt the hair on the back of her neck stand on end and her heart beat faster. Every one of her senses worked overtime. She could smell the damp sawdust in the garden, hear the trickle of water at the lake which was several hundred metres away and the cars on a road in the distance. She could see outlines in the dark of every bush, rock and tree. She could taste the cold air, and she could taste the fear in the stranger. It was a bitter salty taste in her mouth. It made her want to spit the taste out. She could taste blood and see blood, yet there was no blood.

  Everything suddenly felt surreal like she was seeing it from someone else’s perspective. Something bad was going to happen. She felt it in every fibre of her body. It was like an alarm warning her of imminent danger. But was the danger to her or someone else?

  She sensed the stranger step forward from the bush silently. This was his modus of operation, hide behind a bush and get behind the victim. She had been stationary, so she started walking again, but very slowly. She didn’t want to walk fast and force the attacker into making his move. She sensed him moving slowly until he was directly behind her.

  She wondered where the security guards were. Were they still patrolling? Why was this happening on campus again?

  She decided her move would be to turn to face him, make lots of noise and try to disarm him. With a big breath, she suddenly stopped and turned. She saw the startled look on the stranger’s face and in that second of indecision, she screamed as loud as she could. The air split with the sound and the attacker’s eyes widened in shock. She sensed his heart racing, the adrenalin flooding his system and she saw the shock turn to a fury. He raced toward her and she saw the glint of the knife. It was a medium sized knife with a serration down the blade.

  Quick as a flash, she kicked her leg out forward and it hit his hand. The impact spun him slightly, but he did not lose his grip on the knife. She screamed again, wondering how far away the security guards were. She did not want to take the chance of the stranger getting too close to her with that knife in his hand. She knew she could keep him at a distance by kicking him. She did not want to run even though she knew she could easily outrun him. Then he would be free again to harm someone else. No! She had to stop him tonight or keep him occupied until someone got here to help.

  She could hear running steps. Thank goodness. There must have been a guard not too far away. The stranger straightened up and held the knife out in front of him, threatening her. She positioned herself to kick again. He pursed his lips together and she could see he was giving up. She had made too much noise for him and he was going to make his escape. He turned his back to her and started running. There was no way she was going to let him escape. She would follow him.

  Out of the dark, a shape hurled itself at the back of the stranger with a loud shout. The shape connected with a crash and the two shapes fell to the ground in a tumble of arms, legs and coats. Layne gasped when she realised that Andy was the one on the ground with the stranger. Andy was the one who had come hurtling through the night. She screamed again, this time in sheer terror. She stepped forward toward the mass on the ground, trying to work out what to do. She had to get Andy away from the danger.

  The two men were grunting and wrestling. Andy was trying to grab at the hand with the knife and keep the stranger on the ground and the stranger was trying to get up to his feet.

  “HELP!” Layne screamed. “HELP!”

  She danced around the men on the ground trying to aim a kick at the stranger’s head. She kicked his hand and heard the knife hit the ground as he let it go. The stranger reached forward on hands and knees and grabbed at the knife. He turned and in a quick motion, thrust the knife straight into Andy’s chest. Andy had been on his knees reaching forward to grasp the back of the stranger. The knife entered his chest slightly above the heart.

  Layne saw the shock register on Andy’s face. The stranger withdrew the knife and in a split second he was gone. Layne didn’t hear the stranger go. Her eyes were on Andy. He looked down at his chest where blood was running down his cream sweater. So much blood. He grabbed at the wound with his hand and she could see blood running between his fingers. Layne screamed again and rushed forward, falling to her knees next to Andy. He fell backward and lay flat on the ground. Layne bent over him, caressing his face and trying to determine what to do.

  She was sobbing now and trying to talk to him.

  “It’s ok. Andy. I’m here. It’s ok.” She looked up and around at the night. “HELP!”

  She screamed into the night between sobs.

  Andy looked up at her and she didn’t like the look in his eyes. He looked defeated. His eyes never left her face.

  “Andy. Please hang on. Please hang on.” She murmured between sobs.

  She could hear his heart beating and she could hear a strange gurgling sound. She looked down in alarm. She knew what that meant. His lung was punctured and was filling with blood. He coughed slightly and she could see a trickle of blood dribble out the corner of his mouth.

  “Oh. Andy. Hang on.”

  She heard a noise and looked up to see a security guard running toward her.

  “CALL AN AMBULANCE” She screamed to him.

  He turned and walked a few steps away, talking into a phone.

  She could feel Andy slipping away. His eyes were having trouble staying open and she could hear his blood pressure falling.

  “Oh God. Andy. Stay with me. Stay with me.” She begged.

  She closed her eyes and focused on the injured man in front of her. He couldn’t leave her. Not now. Not like this. She had one hand on his cheek and she placed the other hand on the wound. She could feel the blood seeping over her hand.

  Suddenly she had a thought. She needed her blood. If the Bray blood did have something powerful in it then she could mix some of her blood with Andy’s. It sounded bizarre but she was prepared to try anything in that moment. She looked around helpless. What could she use to cut herself? She cried out in frustration. Could she bite a wound in her wrist? She didn’t think her teeth were sharp enough. There was nothing on her except the clothes she was wearing. She looked around desperately and her eyes fell on Andy. He probably had his keys on him, his unit key and his car keys. There was a small penknife on that keyring. She struggled to get her hand in his jeans pocket. Wrong pocket. Damn!

  Andy groaned and the gurgling sound seemed a bit louder. She reached for the other front pocket and managed to wriggle her fingers in and grasp a ring. She pulled and wriggled the keys out of his pocket and frantically opened the pen knife. It looked so small as it shone in the light from behind her. Without another thought she sliced it across her right wrist. Instant pain made her wince. Blood immediately began running from her wrist and down toward her elbow. She placed her bleeding wrist over the wound on Andy’s chest.

  She focused. Every muscle in her body tensed and she pushed her mind toward the wound. Please stop. Please stop bleeding. Please. Stop. Stop. Stop. She gently moved her right hand in slow circles and focused on her hand. Stop. Stop. Stay with me. Stop.

  The security guard knelt next to her. “Ambulance is on its way. What’s happened?”

  She ignored him and focused, tears streaming down her face. A few minutes ticked by. Did she imagine it or did the gurgling sound seem less? She opened her eyes and looked down at Andy. She could feel his blood pressure increasing and less blood flowing from the wound. He was stabilising. He was going to be ok.

  She looked across at the security guard. “I was attacked, and Andy was stabbed, saving me. Where were you?” Her voice was harsh.

  “Sorry miss. Bathroom call.�
��

  She knew he was lying but her focus had to be Andy. Faintly she heard the ambulance siren and a police siren. She checked again, touching Andy’s chest. There appeared to be a trickle of blood still seeping out of the stab wound but not the gush of blood there had been earlier. She could still hear the rattle of blood in his lungs but not the gurgling so she knew there was no more blood filling his lungs. He would survive. The blood had clotted halting the blood loss. His eyes opened and he looked up at her. She smiled at him through her tears.

  Chapter 50

  The paramedics worked on Andy for about fifteen minutes and stabilised him, before loading him on a stretcher and heading to the ambulance. Layne followed and asked the paramedic if she could briefly speak to Andy before they left. She stood next to the stretcher and touched a hand to gently touch his cheek. She looked at the IV that had been set up and although he had an oxygen mask on his eyes were fastened on her.

  “I’ll see you in a little while.” She said quietly to him. “You know what I have to do first.”

  His eyes widened as he comprehended what she had just said. He tried to say something, alarm showing on his face. Gently she caressed his cheek and smiled at him.

  “Don’t worry. I am super woman, remember? I am not going alone.”

  His eyebrows moved as he frowned, trying to understand who she would be taking with her. The paramedics stepped in and the stretcher moved into the waiting ambulance. With lights flashing, it sped off. Layne watched it until it had vanished, swallowed into the dark. She turned around and was face-to-face with Detective Sergeant Barring who was waiting patiently for her. He was flanked by another detective, and two uniformed police were taping off the area.

  “Ms. Harrison. I didn’t expect to see you again so soon. Are you ok?” He asked, concern showing plainly on his face as he looked down at the blood on her blue windcheater and on her arms and hands. The paramedics had tried to examine her as well but she had shrugged them off and told them to concentrate on Andy. They had wrapped a blanket around her and it fell loosely over her shoulders.

  “Yes. I am fine. Just shaken up.”

  Her eyes immediately went to the scene where Andy had been stabbed. Although dark, she could clearly see every detail. The uniform police were moving a few people back away from the area, and had some lighting set up. She became aware that Detective Sergeant Barring was speaking to her.

  “What? I’m sorry.” Her eyes went back to the scene.

  “Can you tell me what happened tonight?” He was asking.

  She spun back to him. “Detective. A man with a knife tried to attack me tonight. Andy tried to stop him and was stabbed. The assailant ran away.”

  Her voice was firm and confident. He hadn’t heard that quality in her voice before.

  “I am happy to give you more detail tomorrow. That is all you need to know for now.”

  His eyebrows rose in surprise at her tone.

  “Right now. I have to find this stranger who has been raping girls and stabbed my friend. Do you understand?” She asked him.

  His brow furrowed as he tried to understand what she was saying. He was trying to do the same, find the stranger who had done this.

  “Detective. You do remember I told you about my ability to smell?”

  “Yes.” How could he forget?

  “While the smell of blood is fresh and strong, I can follow him. He has Andy’s blood on his knife.”

  The detective’s eyes widened. Now he understood what she was saying. It sounded ridiculous even for someone with a keen sense of smell. He was not sure she was completely sane but he understood.

  “I want you to follow me but don’t distract me.” She said firmly.

  The detective nodded. Bewildered and doubtful, but also open minded, and after all, he had already witnessed her ability. He rounded up the other detective while she walked over to the scene of the incident. She was very careful not to step on footprints, blood or any evidence. She stood back as close as she could get to the spot and closed her eyes.

  Instantly, she could see the event again, the wrestling, the knife, the stabbing. She could see the stranger’s face, very tanned and greasy skin, dark brown hair and a slightly bulbous nose. She could smell the stranger’s smell, the Polo Blue and Andy’s smell. Then she could smell the blood, Andy’s blood and her blood. She looked down at her wrist. She hadn’t given it a thought for a while now. The slice wound was quite pronounced but there was only a slight amount of blood oozing now. It had clotted and was starting to heal.

  Tears streamed down her cheeks as she familarised herself with Andy’s blood. Until these past few months, she had never realised that blood had a distinctive smell per person. Poor Andy. He had been trying to save her and nearly lost his own life. Time to think about that later. Focus.

  She spun around to the route the stranger had taken and walked a few steps. Her eyes were on the ground and even in the dark, she could see some drops of blood. She didn’t need to see them she could detect them. She pointed to the ground and called out to the detective.

  “Blood here.”

  The other detective signalled for a uniform policeman to rope off the area she had pointed out. Layne walked, slowly and carefully. The detective thought she almost looked like a wild cat in the jungle, stalking its prey. Her movements were calculated and athletic. Every now and again, she stopped, closed her eyes and smelled deeply. The other detective was puzzled. He kept looking at his senior, waiting for an explanation, but knew better than to ask.

  Layne walked down a path toward the road then turned left and headed down the footpath for about four blocks. The roads were quiet as it was getting late. A few streetlights gave small areas of light and the occasional car drove past with a flash of headlights.

  She turned left then immediately right and down a small side street. The street was quite dark and the two detectives could just see her around twenty metres ahead of them, her head down slightly, the silver from the medical blanket draped over her reflected slightly and made her more visible to them. She almost seemed to glide over the ground. Detective Sergeant Barring wondered what was going to happen here. Was she really on the trail of the attacker? It seemed too unbelievable, but here they were following her. He wondered what would happen when they reached their destination. If there was an attacker, was she about to walk right in? Should he call for backup? Why was he following this girl on a crazy whim? How would he explain this?

  She slowed down and stopped on the footpath in front of a driveway. The two detectives stopped and waited. She stared down the concrete driveway toward a small, old weatherboard house. For a few minutes nothing happened. The policeman waited and could see the side of her face as she faced the house. There was a light on in one of the windows, possibly a lounge room. After a few minutes, Layne walked back to the detectives.

  “That is the house. I don’t think he went to the front door. Maybe he went around the back through that side gate, or into the garage.”

  The detectives looked at the old wooden gate to the right of the house with a old metal garage on the other side. Detective Sergeant Barring frowned as he tried to make a decision on what to do. He needed reasonable grounds to suspect this person may be involved. Was this a wild goose chase? How could Layne possibly be able to do what she just did? How would he explain this girl with a strong sense of smell that had led them here to this house? He looked at the other detective. The younger detective looked at his superior officer frowning. He understood they were following a blood trail but he could not fathom that the girl could walk this far following blood. He couldn’t see anything at all. He was not sure what was going on.

  The senior detective looked at the house again and made his decision.

  “Ms. Harrison. You are to remain here. Do not move from this spot.”

  “Ok.” She answered.

  The two detectives spoke quietly together though Layne heard every word. Maybe one day she would tell the senior detective tha
t she had super hearing as well as super smelling skills. The younger detective headed over to knock on the front door, and Detective Sergeant Barring walked over to the gate and peered over. It was very dark in the backyard but he could make out the pale structure of a type of bungalow about twenty metres away. There was a light on inside the bungalow.

  The knocking on the front door seemed extra loud in the quiet of night. In the distance a few dogs started barking. There was movement in the house and the front door opened. From where the senior detective stood, he could hear the voice of the younger detective and a woman’s voice. He could also hear some sounds coming from the bungalow, like a shuffling sound.

  “Excuse the late hour. I’m Detective Gregson from Eltham Police and we are door-knocking the neighbourhood as there has been an assault tonight.”

  “What? An assault? Where?” The woman’s voice asked in an English accent.

  Detective Sergeant Barring’s focus was on the movement in the bungalow. He could see the outline of a man move past the light and to the bungalow door. The person was obviously listening to the conversation.

  “It happened on the university campus.”

  “And you’re door-knocking all the way over here?” The voice asked.

  “Someone was seen running this way.” The detective answered smoothly.

  Detective Sergeant Barring silently lifted the catch on the gate, holding his breath and hoping it would not squeak. He pushed gently and the gate opened just the tiniest amount. He wanted to be prepared should he need to get through this gate in a hurry. Holding the gate ajar with one hand, he reached down and touched his gun, reassuring himself that it was there and releasing the clip. If this was the attacker, then he was armed with a knife.

  He heard the detective at the front door speaking with the woman.

  “We would like to have a quick look around your yard, if that is ok with you?”